With Star Tours serving as the centerpiece of the celebration, Star Wars Weekends returned bigger than ever with new characters, new shows, a larger stage for the Hyperspace Hoopla and some of the brightest stars from the Star Wars Saga and Star Wars: The Clone Wars.

Let’s join our favorite Star Wars Weekends roving reporter, John, as he chats with some of the celebrities and fans visiting Weekend I, recaps some of the Grand Opening fun and gives us a peek into what’s coming up for Weekend II.

For just about four more weeks, soft-shell crab fans will want to know that Chef Brian Piasecki has the delectable seafood on the menu at California Grill, serving them two interesting ways: in the sushi “Medusa Roll” with asparagus, spicy mayo and yuzu pepper sauce; and as little sliders on housemade brioche with a side of Florida peach ketchup. Order them both and it’s a delicious, indulgent dinner.

It’s been 16 years this month since California Grill debuted on May 15, 1995, high atop Disney’s Contemporary Resort, opening a new chapter in Walt Disney World Resort dining. Our server Steven has been there since Day 1, he told us, and still enjoys hearing diners rave about the cuisine.

If soft-shell crab isn’t your favorite, you may want to try Chef Piasecki’s crispy Asian rock shrimp salad with Florida citrus and a kicky dressing with soy and wasabi cream. Or the heirloom Florida melon salad with baby arugula, prosciutto di Parma and vanilla vinaigrette. Carnivores not counting calories will like the rotisserie-roasted barbecued chicken flatbread with Peppadew barbecue sauce, Zellwood sweet corn salsa and smoked cheddar. Warning: Chef Piasecki changes his menu often, so these springtime eats may not be on the summer menu.

Springtime entrées include a cast iron-seared veal tenderloin with tiny potatoes and fiddlehead ferns with a morel-spring veggie vinaigrette; artichoke and cheese raviolis; and petite chicken with pickled ramps, wild mushrooms, Zellwood corn, bacon, favas and pommes frites with a sherry jus. No worries, the classics are still on the menu if you want – grilled pork tenderloin with goat cheese polenta and oak-fired filet of beef with mascarpone potatoes are there.

It’s the season of caps and gowns and “Pomp and Circumstance” and the time of year when we at the Disneyland Resort have the honor of recognizing 10 exceptional Orange County graduates for the passion and commitment they have shown to their communities and academia.

In six years, the Disneyland Resort has awarded more than $300,000 in scholarships. The caliber of students exceeds expectations each year – and this year is no exception. Meet Jordyn Berk of Capistrano Valley High School.

Berk learned about diabetes at an early age by watching her grandfather’s struggle with the disease and decided to take action. She combined her passion for karate with her hope of finding a cure and founded the annual Chop for Charity fundraiser in benefit of the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation and CHOC Children’s. The event raises money by showcasing board-breaking demonstrations and allowing individuals a try at their own karate chop at a wooden board. This year alone, Berk, who also volunteers at Boys Town, the American Red Cross and Second Harvest (just to name a few), has already raised more than $50,000.

We are proud of all of our scholarship recipients and wish them continued success as they embark on their college experience.

We just got our hands on the lineup of performers for the “Eat to the Beat” Concert Series at the 2011 Epcot International Food & Wine Festival and it’s going to be good. Look who’s coming – there will be several Grammy-winning artists and some new acts for music lovers. This year’s schedule (subject to change) includes:

Taylor Dayne: 9/30-10/2/11

38 Special: 10/3-5/11

Jon Secada: 10/6-7/11

Roger Hodgson formerly of Supertramp: 10/8-9/11

Billy Ocean: 10/10-12/11

Starship starring Mickey Thomas: 10/13-16/11

Sugar Ray: 10/17-19/11

The Orchestra starring former members of ELO: 10/20-21/11

Howard Jones: 10/22-23/11

Boyz II Men: 10/24-26/11

Gin Blossoms: 10/27-28/11

Sister Hazel: 10/29-30/11

Hanson: 10/31-11/1/11

The Pointer Sisters: 11/2-3/11

Night Ranger: 11/4-6/11

Air Supply: 11/7-8/11

Richard Marx: 11/9-10/11

Big Bad Voodoo Daddy: 11/11-13/11

The concerts, which are included with Epcot admission, will be at the America Gardens Theatre stage beginning September 30. Performances will be nightly and of course, this year’s schedule is subject to change.

Here’s a quick look around the Disneyland Resort at some of the new offerings you won’t want to miss!

Studio Disney 365 is right on trend with a new makeover package for girls themed to what else…Pirate Rockers. While most girls will probably choose to “rock” the side braid style bun complete with color streaks, I can tell you, adding the pirate-themed hat and costume finishes the look. Arrgghh ya ready??

Also making a splash this summer is a Little Mermaid-inspired transformation at Bibbidi Bobbidi Boutique. Your little princesses will surely dive in for some fun as they are transformed from head to toe or…fin!

Both transformation packages are available for a limited time only, so if your little one is looking to switch up her summer style, then you know the place to go. Reservations are available now. Call 714-781-STYLE.

Guys – right now I know you’re shaking your head that this post has been focused on offerings for girls, but take note: here’s a little something that will be more your speed. In the next week or so, look for a post on a much-anticipated signing taking place June 25 with Custom Car Builder and Designer Chip Foose. See, I’ve got you covered, too!

In case you aren’t familiar, this new attraction will allow guests to journey to the ocean floor to accompany Ariel and her friends on their exciting – and daring – undersea adventures. To make this experience as magical as possible, Walt Disney Imagineering (WDI) has been working hard to design advanced Audio-Animatronics figures and other special effects to enable families to truly become a part of Ariel’s world.

WDI has already begun laying the attraction’s internal ride track, which will whisk guests in an Omnimover clamshell vehicle through colorful scenes above and below the surface of the sea.

The expanded Fantasyland – and its many new offerings – are scheduled to open in phases beginning in late 2012.

First, I’m happy to share a collection coming to Walt Disney World that was inspired by Courtney McBride, a retail guest service manager from Disney’s Contemporary Resort. In March 2010, Courtney was recognized for her outstanding leadership by her fellow merchandise cast members. I thought a great celebratory “prize” would be the opportunity to design a series of Hidden Mickey pins. I asked Courtney about the reason she chose to feature the United Kingdom.

“I love the United Kingdom,” exclaimed Courtney. “I’m a fan of British pop culture. When I visited the UK on holiday, I realized that many British icons represented in movies, television shows and artwork are part of the landscape. I think my favorite pin is the Rose and Crown Pub logo as it is one of my favorite places at Walt Disney World.”

A set of pins coming to the Disneyland Resort features the one and only Mickey Mouse. The quote that inspired me was something like – “A Mickey Mouse by any other name is still Mickey” (then again, I may have been thinking of roses). Mickey’s pose was taken from a Mickey Mouse Club card from the 1930s. His name is written in Italian, Norwegian, German, Swedish and English. “Micky Maus” is my favorite.

For years, I’ve included Disney Princesses in the Hidden Mickey collections. This year, it’s Princesses in flowers (see – I did have roses on my mind). The set will be released in Florida.

Finally, you will find additional tee-shirt pins being released in California and Florida (special thanks to Disney artist Monty Maldovan for being the model for the image at top). The artwork for these pins came from Tokyo Disney Resort in December 2008. After seeing the art, I immediately thought they would make great pins (especially with so many unique characters like Angel, Scrooge McDuck, Donald Duck’s nephews and Tigger).

Keep watching DisneyPins.com as we will update the site once the “Wave B” pins have been released for trading coming mid-Summer. Happy Trading!

At Disney’s Animal Kingdom, our guests get to see elephants in a beautiful, naturalistic setting. This is just one of the many ways that we are inspiring conservation by connecting families with the wonders of the natural world.

I’m pleased to report that we’ve recently achieved two elephant conservation milestones – the first milestone is the birthday of our youngest elephant calf, Luna, who was born to second-time mom, Donna, one year ago this past Friday, May 20. At her birth, which was announced here on the Disney Parks Blog, Luna weighed 288 pounds.

With an average weight gain of 2 pounds per day, Luna now weighs a whopping 896 pounds! Elephant team members tell us that her favorite things to do are playing with the other elephant calves – and in the mud wallow on the Kilimanjaro Safaris – and chasing the native birds that “dare” to enter her habitat.

Luna is the fifth elephant born at Disney’s Animal Kingdom. In addition to Donna’s first female calf Nadirah, Tufani, a male, was born in 2003; Kianga, a female, was born in 2004; and Tsavo, the youngest male, joined the herd in 2008. All remain on the savanna at Disney’s Animal Kingdom. These births represent a conservation milestone because the number of elephants in North American zoological facilities and wildlife centers has been dwindling and Disney’s Animal Kingdom is participating in the Association of Zoos and Aquariums’ Elephant Species Survival Plan. Research has shown that, when people see elephants and other wildlife face-to-face, they feel a strong connection and are motivated to take action to protect wildlife and nature. And having elephant babies enables our elephants to live in herds with moms, “aunties” and youngsters, as they would in the wild.

Since elephants are an endangered species, the second conservation milestone might seem confusing at first. It’s elephant population management in the wild. Because elephant habitat in Africa is shrinking, in some areas there are more elephants than the limited amount of habitat can sustain. During the past seven years, I’ve had the opportunity, with other team members, to be part of an international coalition of veterinarians, conservation groups and others traveling to Africa to perform laparoscopic vasectomies on bull elephants. The goal is to help humanely control the population as an alternative to culling. The procedure is designed to reduce the elephant birth rates in wildlife reserves, while maintaining normal social behaviors for the individual elephants. Our elephant population management program has now been utilized in two African countries and six different wildlife reserves. With no other alternatives, most of these reserves were poised to hunt these elephants without our help.

On our most recent trip, which took place earlier this month, we performed vasectomies on 14 bull elephants in the Selati Wildlife Reserve in South Africa. All the elephants recovered well from the procedure. We also taught South African veterinarians how to perform the vasectomies and they were performing the surgeries on their own by the end of the trip. The team from Disney started this important work many years ago and I’m proud to have seen its growth and success. From these efforts, the Elephant Population Management Program was formed and is now its own non-profit conservation organization. This is just one way that we are helping to conserve elephants in the wild.

Helping animals – and inspiring conservation by connecting people with the wonder of the natural world – are efforts that we all can be very proud of.

Over at Disneyland park, you’ll take off to a galaxy far, far away with more than 50 different 3D adventures on Star Tours. You’ll be transported to many Star Wars destinations where you’ll come face to face with characters throughout the Saga. Buckle up!

And if that’s not enough, I’m really excited to see “Mickey’s Soundsational Parade.” This exciting parade brings a new beat to the streets of Disneyland park, as guests go on a journey of sound, with an exciting musical score, thrilling rhythms and bold percussion.

While Disney’s Hollywood Studios was abuzz last week with all-things-Star Tours, there also was an electric (guitar) feeling in the air along Sunset Blvd., as Aerosmith guitarist Joe Perry made a surprise visit to the roller coaster bearing his band’s famous name.

The legendary musician, who recalled riding Rock ‘n’ Roller Coaster Starring Aerosmith dozens of times with guests on its opening day in 1999, posed with Goofy in front of the four-story-tall, iconic guitar in the attraction’s courtyard. Disney Parks photographer Gene Duncan, who took pictures of Perry and the rest of Aerosmith at the grand opening ceremony in 1999, also was on hand last week to shoot this photo of Goofy and his new rock-and-roll pal.

The members of Aerosmith are known for dedication to their fans (that, and for taking them on really fast, super-stretch limo rides through the L.A. hills, of course). Following a few photos with Goofy, Joe showed that dedication and made quite a few Magic Moments as he signed autographs and posed for pictures with many of the guests who had gathered in the courtyard to see the excitement. Two of those guests, Holley Whitehead and Morgan McGaugn, visiting from Mississippi, are pictured above as they capture their own souvenir photo with the legendary guitarist.

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